DeBartolo to build East Kapolei mall
The state Department of Hawaiian Home Lands selects the developer
The state Department of Hawaiian Home Lands has selected Miami-based DeBartolo Development to build a mall on a 67-acre site in East Kapolei.
DeBartolo was selected because of its experience from two mainland firms that became the final bidders for the site.
"We are very pleased to be able to attract a company of DeBartolo's caliber that shares our vision for this community," said Micah A. Kane, chairman of the Hawaiian Homes Commission. "This is really an opportunity for DHHL to successfully add a huge economic component to the ahupuaa of Kapolei."
The mall is expected to become the single largest source of revenue for DHHL, which expects a minimum rent of $4.7 million in the first year.
Over the first 25 years, DHHL expects to receive more than $141 million. That amount could potentially be more, said Kane, given that specific lease terms have yet to be ironed out. At minimum, the lease will last 25 years, and at maximum, 65 years.
Last year, DHHL began a national search for a developer to build a mall on the Kapolei parcel. The meeting with DeBartolo came about at a commercial development trade show in Miami.
Tenants for the mall have not been selected yet, though Kane said DHHL plans to work with DeBartolo on pursuing shops that would supply a good mix of jobs for a community of affordable homes.
There would potentially be space for two to three anchor stores measuring about 150,000 square feet and one space as large as 220,000 square feet.
The mall would be built in phases, with the first phase expected to open some time in 2009, when the North-South Road should be finished.
The department hopes to shift all its operations to Kapolei, where it would oversee the development of homes for the Hawaiian community.
In August, DHHL broke ground on East Kapolei I, a 97-acre parcel offering about 400 single-family homes.
By the end of next year, DHHL plans to move its office headquarters from downtown Honolulu to a brand-new office across from the mall in Kapolei.
The department is sinking investments into the surrounding infrastructure, and believes in partnering with private developers for the growth of the entire area.
Kane said the "piko" or central hub of Kapolei should not be so much around the Villages of Kapolei, but closer to East Kapolei and the future University of Hawaii West Oahu campus.
"By creating retail options away from the currently congested areas, traffic circulation in the area will also improve," he said.
DeBartolo Development, based in Tampa, Fla., specializes in retail and mixed-use projects. It also has offices in Arizona, Arkansas, Ohio and New York.
It was founded more than 60 years ago by Edward J. DeBartolo Sr., who takes credit for pioneering the shopping mall concept. His son, Edward J. DeBartolo Jr., resigned in 1997 as chairman of the San Francisco 49ers amid a gambling-license scandal in Louisiana, in which he later pleaded guilty to a felony charge of failing to report an extortion attempt by former Louisiana Gov. Edwin Edwards.
Today, Edward DeBartolo Jr. is chairman of Debartolo Development and ranks No. 562 on Forbes magazine's list of the world's richest people, with a net worth of $1.4 billion.
Ed Kobel is the firm's current president and chief operating officer.
Recent development projects by the company range from a retail shopping center in Ocala, Fla., to a new Whole Foods Market in Duluth, Ga.
Kane said the department feels good about working with DeBartolo Development.
"They have been very professional and sincere in their efforts to communicate and listen to our perspective, our Hawaiian perspective, as to what we see there and also how it fits into our mission to put more native Hawaiians on the land," he said. "On top of that, they are very experienced in this type of development and are one of the largest developers of retail centers in the country."
